Virginia Giuffre ‘to be banned from speaking publicly about Prince Andrew sex claims until after the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations

Virginia Giuffre will be banned from speaking publicly about her claims against Prince Andrew until after the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations under the terms of her settlement with the Duke of York.

Miss Giuffre, now known by her married name, Roberts, had alleged she was forced to have sex with Andrew three times when she was 17 under the orders of the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Last month, she was given the go-ahead to sue the 61-year-old royal for unspecified damages in a New York civil court. But despite vowing to fight the allegations and repeatedly protesting his innocence, the prince yesterday agreed to pay a huge sum to settle the case before it ever reaches a jury.

More details of the deal have now emerged, including claims it has been agreed that Miss Giuffre will not continue to tell her story publicly until later in the year, so as not to add further damage to the Royal Family during events to commemorate the monarch’s 70 years on the throne, the Times reports.

Sources told the newspaper there would be a ‘period of silence’ when both parties would have to stick to the terms of a carefully worded statement.

Beyond the Jubilee celebrations however, Miss Giuffre is expected to be allowed to public a book telling her story at the end of the year. 

‘Ordinarily, you would have a complete non-disclosure [agreement] on both sides,’ lawyer Mitchell Epner told the Times.

He added: ‘Since it’s a settlement in the context of, on its face, an apology from Prince Andrew,’ [he believes Miss Giuffre] ‘has agreed not to say anything [but] she will be in a position to write a book, probably for this Christmas season’. 

Royal author Penny Junor said earlier that the settlement made is likely to come as a ‘huge relief’ to the rest of the royal family but that the damage to Andrew is irreparable.

She said: ‘Going to trial, it could have been very, very nasty. It could have been embarrassing, humiliating, and it would have been huge fodder for the tabloid press. It could have really taken the shine off the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee year.’

Amber Melville-Brown, a partner at the New York office of the London law firm Withers, added it would be ‘worth its weight in gold to the Queen as she celebrates her Platinum Jubilee’.